The present invention relates to a Mexican jumping bean toy, and more particularly to a ring which incorporates the Mexican jumping bean and in which the movement of the Mexican jumping bean will provide hours of entertainment for children of all ages.
Mexican jumping bean is a common name for a seed of any of several Mexican shrubs of the Spurge family that tumbles about because of the movements of the larva of a small moth inside of it. The seed initially is a nursery for the moth caterpillar. A female moth lays an egg in the seed of the plant when the seed is forming and subsequently, the seed develops around the egg. Once hatched from the moth egg, the caterpillar begins at once to grow and eats all the fruit in the seed. At this stage, the movement of the bean is caused by the caterpillar feeding inside of it. Eventually, the seed coat is left and becomes a shell around the caterpillar.
The caterpillar then lines its shell with silk to form a coccoon for its transformation to a moth. As it spins the silk, it moves from side to side and makes the bean jump. For several months thereafter, the caterpillar lives inside the seed in the cocoon. During those months, the bean may stop jumping but the heat from a person's hand may make the insect move and thus make the bean jump again. Because of the unique nature of these beans, there are many games in which the jumping beans are incorporated.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a toy which utilizes the unique nature of Mexican jumping beans to provide entertainment.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a toy utilizing a Mexican jumping bean which can be worn as a ring.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ring utilizing a Mexican jumping bean in which the movement of the bean will cause the container enclosing the bean to wiggle and turn.